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Wednesday, 20 November 2013

The government has
decided to cancel a scandal-tainted chopper deal with Anglo-Italian firm
AgustaWestland, prejudging the outcome of a meeting on Wednesday between
company executives and Defence Ministry officials to discuss the contract,
three sources said.

The decision could
re-open the contract to rivals, including United Technologies Corp's Sikorsky Aircraft,
EADS’ Eurocopter and Lockheed Martin.

Scrapping the 560
million euro ($757.40 million) deal to buy 12 helicopters for top politicians
will not necessarily lead to New Delhi blacklisting the firm, sources said. It,
however, closes a chapter of the struggle by AgustaWestland, a division of
Italian defence group Finmeccanica, to keep the contract alive.

A senior Defence
Ministry official said there was no hope that AgustaWestland officials could
salvage the deal in the meeting scheduled for Wednesday. "This is just a
face-saving exercise by Agusta. But the government has already decided to
cancel the deal because they have violated the integrity pact," said a
source in the ministry, who declined to identified.

A spokesman for
Finmeccanica declined to comment. Under India's defence procurement rules, the
integrity pact prohibits paying or accepting bribes. The government can cancel
a contract if the pact is violated, and the seller has to forfeit any security
money it deposited as a bidder. Last month, AgustaWestland called for
arbitration in the dispute, but Defence Ministry sources say there is no case
for this because the firm breached the integrity pact.

However, under the
rules, it could still take the case to an Indian court. The deal for the AW101
helicopters went off track in February after the then-chief executive of
Finmeccanica was arrested by Italian police for allegedly paying bribes to
secure the deal, prompting India to freeze payments to the company.
AgustaWestland said last month that suspension of payment was not provided for
under the terms of the contract and that Indian authorities had not responded
to its requests for bilateral discussions since April.

Italy and India
are separately investigating the allegations. AgustaWestland denies any
wrongdoing.

India's federal
auditor said in August the Defence Ministry had initially stipulated that the
helicopters should be able to fly to an altitude of 6,000 metres (19,685 feet),
which meant that AgustaWestland could not compete since the AW101 was certified
to fly only to 4,572 metres (15,000 feet). Later, the minimum altitude
requirement was lowered to 4,500 metres (14,763 feet), even though the
helicopters were expected to be used in mountainous northern and northeastern
parts of the country where altitudes are higher, it said.

India took
delivery of three helicopters before the deal stalled. Three more have been
ready for delivery to India. — Reuters

The choppy deal

The government had
entered into a $757.40 million (around Rs 3,600 crore) deal with
AgustaWestland, a division of Italian defence group Finmeccanica, for purchase
of 12 helicopters to fly top politicians

What went awry

The deal went off
track in February after the then-chief executive of Finmeccanica was arrested
by the Italian police for allegedly paying bribes to secure the deal, prompting
India to freeze payments to the company

The government can
cancel a contract if the pact is violated. Last month, AgustaWestland called
for arbitration in the dispute, but Defence Ministry sources say there is no
case for this because the firm breached the integrity pact

The government
last month issued a final "show-cause" notice to the firm seeking to
end the contract

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20131120/main4.htm

Centre approves
Army corps along China border

New Delhi,
November 19

The government has
given its final go-ahead to the Army for raising a corps along the China
border. It will involve deployment of 50,000 additional troops along the border
at a cost of Rs 65,000 crore.

The 17 Corps, the
latest and the 14th such formation of the Army, will initially be based at
Ranchi in Jharkhand and after development of infrastructure, will be moved to
Panagarh in West Bengal. This will be the first corps with strike elements to
be deployed close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The Defence
Ministry has given the Government Sanction Letter (GSL) to the Army in this
regard with complete details of the new formation to be raised and the funds
sanctioned for the purpose, government sources said.

The postings of
the officers to the new formation have started and its chief will be chosen
from the fresh batch of Major Generals who have faced a promotion board
recently to be elevated to the rank of Lieutenant General, sources said. — PTI

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20131120/main6.htm

VK Singh files reply to J-K Assembly notice

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News
Service

Jammu, November 19

Former Army Chief
Gen VK Singh has filed his reply to the breach of privilege notice issued to
him by the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly.

Speaker Mubarak
Gul received VK Singh’s reply on Tuesday and described it as positive. The
Assembly had issued notice to the General asking him to explain his allegation
of pay-offs to certain ministers in the state by the Army. The notice was
issued to Gen Singh on October 24 and he was given 20 days to file a reply.

Sources said Gen
Singh, in his reply, has denied his remarks. “I have received the General’s
reply and need to examine it properly before divulging any details. I have gone
through it briefly and it looks positive,” Gul told The Tribune. The Speaker
said he has also received a VCD of the controversial interview given by the
General to a Delhi-based news channel on September 23, 2013.

It was in this
interview the General had alleged that the Army was secretly funding mainstream
politicians in J-K since 1947. “I have to see the entire interview before
announcing the future course of action,” said Gul.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20131120/nation.htm#9

India, Vietnam to bolster defence ties

Ashok Tuteja

Tribune News
Service

New Delhi,
November 19

Bilateral defence
cooperation against the backdrop of shared fears over a rising China will be
high on the agenda when India and Vietnam hold talks here later this week
during the state visit of Vietnam Communist Party general secretary Nguyen Phu
Trong to this country.

India’s offer of a
$100 million credit line to Vietnam to purchase military equipment,
particularly four surveillance boats, has already created the right atmosphere
for the visit by the Vietnamese leader.

Nguyen will hold
delegation-level talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here tomorrow at
which security, defence, economic and cultural issues are expected to be
discussed apart from various global developments, official sources said.

Thanks to Chinese
assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea, India has expanded its defence
cooperation with Vietnam in recent years.

Apart from
offering the credit line, the Indian Navy is learnt to have agreed to train
Vietnamese submarine crews as Hanoi begins to acquire six kilo-class submarines
from Russia. Asked if India was also considering Vietnam’s keenness on buying
BrahMos missile, sources said it was not on the agenda at this stage.

Beijing’s
posturing on the South China Sea is also likely to figure prominently during
the talks between the two sides. Both India and Vietnam have noticed a
significant change in China’s position over the disputed sea. Sources said the
Chinese now appear to discuss the South China Sea sovereignty issue within the
ASEAN ambit.

Security, defence, economic and cultural
issues are expected to be discussed apart from various global developments

Beijing's posturing on the South China Sea
is likely to figure prominently during the talks

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20131120/nation.htm#20

NATO ally aircraft may have snooped on INS
Vikramaditya

New Delhi,
November 19

Aircraft carrier
INS Vikramaditya may have been snooped on by a surveillance aircraft belonging
to one of the NATO countries when it was undergoing sea trials in Russia.

The aircraft
carrier may have been snooped on by an American-origin P-3C Orion surveillance
aircraft belonging to the NATO nations, sources said.

They, however,
said the warship was with the Russian Navy when the P-3C Orion flew close to it
during the sea trials.

INS Vikramaditya
has generated a lot of interest in the global navies and a lot of them,
including both friends and adversaries, want to know about its capabilities and
strengths. — PTI

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20131120/edit.htm#4

Relief all over as
Kayani is set to retire

His farewell
advice to successor unsolicited and uncalled for

Kuldip Nayar

PAKISTAN Army
Chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's announcement to retire on November 29 was a lead
story in his country's media. Some newspapers had bannered it. Opposition
leader Syed Khurshid Shah welcomed the statement. In fact, there has been
relief all over, including in India, that Kayani had announced his exit.

This was primarily
because Kayani was considered an ambitious General. Moreover, it was believed
that there might be another coup because such had been the practice in the
past. But, fortunately, Kayani has come out in the open on what his plans are.
"I am grateful to the political leadership and the nation for reposing
their trust in me and the Pakistan Army at this important juncture of our
national history. However, I share the general opinion that institutions and
traditions are stronger than individuals and must take precedence."

The perception
about Pakistan is that the Army can walk in whenever it likes. The coups first
by Gen Mohammad Ayub, then by Gen Zia-ul-Haq and finally by Gen Parvez
Musharraf have given the impression that although the Army goes back to the
barracks, its influence does not wane.

This is true as
well because even Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has said that the PM is the
'boss', has been careful not to lessen the pre-eminence of the army. Since the
Prime Minister, after election through a democratic process, was thrown out by
General Mushrraf, Nawaz Sharif is understandably respectful to the Army Chief.
Both the PM and Kayani are reportedly discussing who should succeed Kayani, a
job which in a democratic country is settled by the government. Most pictures I
see in newspapers show Kayani by the side of Nawaz Sharif.

Therefore, there
was surprise as well as a sense of satisfaction when there was a cryptic press
release from the Inter Services Public Relations that the Chief of Army Staff
will retire on November 29, when his extended tenure ends. In fact, when Prime
Minister Yousuf Reza Gilani gave Kayani three years’ extension, there were
rumours that Gilani had no choice as if the extension was at the point of gun.
There was nothing like that. Gilani wanted a professional head to depoliticise
the Army, something which Mushraff had not done during the eight and a half
years that he stayed in power.

Whether Kayani’s
retirement in a regular manner is enough of evidence to infer that there would
never be a coup in Pakistan is not easy to say. But chances will lessen as the
days go by because the people have more and more vested interest in the
election process. I find the leading politicians of different parties going on
record as saying that the people would come on to the streets if ever the Army
tries to take over.

I wish it would be
true. But my experience is different. When Zulfikar Ali Bhutto assumed power in
the wake of the Bangladesh liberation war, he told me that “we have learnt from
history” and that the Pakistanis would revolt and hit the streets to stop the
tanks if they ever came out. This was proved wrong when Musharraf took over.

The Pakistanis,
like we Indians, want to rule themselves. But with almost a span of 50 years of
military rule since the 66-year-old Independence, democracy has not taken roots
in the country. The people are too afraid. Today the situation has worsened
because the Army is the only force which has the wherewithal to fight the
menace called Taliban. The challenge will become bigger when the Western forces
leave Afghanistan next year.

I am intrigued by
more or less the farewell statement that Kayani has made. He has said: “It is
important that the military leadership in future also continues to play its
unreserved role for (the) strengthening of (the) democratic system in the country.”
That Kayani made the statement on October 12 to coincide with the military coup
in which the elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was thrown out is significant.
He announced his retirement on October 6 but delayed the statement by six days.
I do not know what message he was trying to convey.

But Kayani's use
of words like the military's "unreserved role" for the strengthening
of the democratic system conveys it all. The "unreserved role" means
that the military is expected to act in a manner which is not written in any Constitution,
nor defined otherwise. The role is important to "strengthen (the)
democratic system" but not spelled out.

Kayani has been
concentrating on Kashmir. He has removed the demand for plebiscite and forsaken
Musharraf's proposal to make the borders of Jammu and Kashmir irrelevant.
During Kayani's time the violations of the ceasefire have increased to as many
as 100 in the last few weeks.

Kayani's vague
words remind me of what General Zia-ul-Haq told me during his dictatorial
regime. General Zia-ul Haq argued that the Army had every right to intervene if
the situation went bleak. I told him "you have come in whenever you wanted
to do. Where did the worsening of the situation arise and where was the
justification?"

Kayani should know
that the elected government has the final word. Most of Pakistan's problems are
the doings of the military. The Taliban whom it is trying to eliminate in its
own country is because of the military's thinking that the group fired by the
ideology of jihad will come in handy to keep India on its toes. Today
Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has become such a Frankenstein that Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif has promulgated an ordinance of special powers to
confront the Taliban.

Kayani's farewell
advice to his successor, yet to be named, to back democracy is unsolicited and
uncalled for. Kayani should realise that democracy is not a gift, definitely
not from the armed forces. What he is saying from experience is that the
Pakistanis are not prepared for another military rule. This has had a salutary
effect of Mushraff's failure and people's loss of faith in military rule. It is
a plus point for democracy in Pakistan.

The hardball
negotiations between Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and the United States
over what happens when foreign combat troops leave by December 31, 2014, seem
to have inched closer to an agreement.

If there is no
agreement, all troops and not just combat personnel could be pulled out.
Reports suggest that compromises have been reached on key contentious clauses,
one of them being Mr Karzai's insistence that any troops staying on do not
enter Afghan homes in raids.

Mr Karzai's
spokesperson reportedly told a select group of journalists that a compromise
over the possible deal-breaker has been reached after US Secretary of State
John Kerry spoke to the Afghan President on Tuesday. A journalist privy to that
briefing said that initial Afghan offer was to invite Secretary Kerry to speak
to the Loya Jirga (a Grand council of 3,000 Afghan elders) that begins meeting
on Thursday in Kabul to convince them.

The Americans,
though, reportedly agreed to President Obama writing a letter to the Afghan people
expressing his regret for mistakes in the past during US raids that killed
Afghan civilians. His apology and assurance of no recurrence of those mistakes
is reportedly to be appended to the draft Bilateral Strategic Agreement (BSA)
that the Jirga will debate.

US bases for
military aid, equipment and training

Mr Karzai's office
has confirmed that Mr Kerry has assured the Afghan head of state that President
Obama will give the Afghan people clearly written assurances which will be part
of the draft text submitted to the Jirga. The Presidential Office also
confirmed that other issue discussed between Secretary Kerry and President
Karzai was Afghanistan's security and defence after the April 2014 Presidential
polls. So, the agreement, if reached, will allow the US to keep bases and
troops in Afghanistan with the quid pro quo being America providing military
aid, training and assistance to Afghan security forces post 2014.

Jurisdiction of US
crimes

The other
contentious clause is what happens to crimes committed by US troops in
Afghanistan? Though it's unclear what compromise, if any, has been reached, the
US insists it will not back down on the condition that only its military and
civil courts will have complete jurisdiction to try any troops committing crimes.
The US had completely withdrawn from Iraq in 2009 when a similar insistence
wasn't agreed to. The most infamous incident involving an American soldier in
recent times took place in March, 2012 when Staff Sergeant Robert Bales went on
a murderous massacre killing 16 civilians and injuring six others in Panjwai
district of Kandahar province. The soldier was sentenced to life in prison
without the possibility of parole by a jury in Washington in August 2013.

Draft strategic
agreement negotiations

Though the number
of US troops that remain (if any) after the drawdown of foreign boots on the
ground by December 31, 2014, will be decided by President Obama, the draft BSA
(Bilateral Strategic Agreement) being negotiated says. The troops will stay, of
course, only if it is signed. The Pentagon has reportedly been plugging for
between 10,000-15,000 foreign troops to stay on for training, assistance and
counter-terrorism operations. A draft BSA in the process of being negotiated
states, "Confirming the recognition in the Strategic Partnership Agreement
that cooperation between the Parties is based on mutual respect and shared
interests - most notably, a common desire for peace and to strengthen
collective efforts to achieve a region that is economically integrated, and no
longer a safe haven for al-Qaeda and its affiliates." It acknowledges,
"that ISAF's mission will be concluded by the end of 2014 and that the
close partnership will continue beyond the end of the transition period
including through NATO and Afghanistan's mutual commitment to work to establish
a new NATO-led Mission to train, advise, and assist the Afghan National
Security Forces, and noting here that such a mission will also need to be
provided with the necessary authorities, status, arrangements, and legal
basis.'The document makes it clear
negotiations are on for troops to stay till 2024 and beyond if necessary.
Article 28 states, 'This Agreement shall enter into force on January 1, 2015,
after the Parties notify one another through diplomatic channels of the
completion of their respective internal legal requirements necessary for the
entry into force of this Agreement. It shall remain in force until the end of
2024 and beyond."

India watches
keenly

The 25-page
document along with US President Barack Obama's letter of regret is reportedly
going to be placed before the Loya Jirga for debate starting Thursday. Analysts
are divided on whether the elders will reject the clause allowing US troops to
conduct raids inside Afghan homes and/or insist that American troops, accused
of crimes, be tried in Afghan courts or whether the Jirga is just a
rubber-stamp for President Karzai. It also has to get Afghan Parliament's as
well as Congressional approval. Worried about the ramifications for Indian assets
in Afghanistan and terror spilling across Pakistan's border into India, if
there is a foreign military vacuum, New Delhi has always pushed for no hasty or
complete withdrawal of coalition troops. As regards the strategic agreement
between the Americans and Afghans, New Delhi will hope the Dari proverb
"no matter how high the mountain is, there's still always a way to the
top" rings true.

OSLO: The
Norwegian military said on Tuesday it plans to put its troops on a vegetarian
diet once a week in a bid to fight a new kind of enemy — climate change.

The army said its
new meatless Mondays are meant to cut its consumption of ecologically
unfriendly foods whose production contributes heavily to global warming.

"It's a step
to protect our climate. The idea is to serve food that's respectful of the
environment," spokesman Eystein Kvarving told AFP.

The diet has already
been introduced at one of Norway's main bases and will soon be rolled out to
all units, including those serving overseas, said the army, estimating it would
cut its meat consumption by 150 tonnes per year.

"It's not
about saving money," said Kvarving. "It's about being more concerned
for our climate, more ecologically friendly and also healthier."

A Norwegian
environmental group that campaigns for meatless Mondays nationwide, The Future
in Our Hands, welcomed the army announcement.

"The defence
ministry deserves a lot of praise because it's taking climate and environmental
issues seriously," said the group's director, Arild Hermstad.

According to the
organisation, the average Norwegian eats more than 1,200 animals over the
course of their life, including 1,147 chickens, 22 sheep, six cattle and 2.6
deer.

The Government of India has said that torture
inflicted upon on slain martyr Capt. Saurabh Kalia by the Pakistan Army cannot
be termed as a war crime.

Counsel for the
martyr’s family Arvind Sharma said the Union government told the Supreme Court
that it had no intentions to raise the issue in the Geneva Convention since it
was a signatory in the Shimla agreement of 1972.

The Supreme Court
issued a notice to the Union government on a petition by Capt. Saurabh Kalia’s
father N.K. Kalia on December 14, 2012, seeking a direction that the matter
should be referred to the International Court of Justice. The family had even
approached the Defence Ministry to raise the issue in the International Court.

But the Ministry
hinted on solving all the matters peacefully through bilateral talks with the
neighbouring Pakistan.

Defence Minister
A.K. Antony in his reply to Karnataka MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar in Rajya Sabha in
October said that, “we are committed to settle differences with Pakistan by
peaceful means and through bilateral negotiations.”

Capt. Kalia’s
father has alleged that the government had never taken the issue seriously and
never raised the matter in the bipartite talks even. Capt. Kalia of 4thJat
Regiment was the first Indian officer to disclose of incursion of the Pakistan
Army into the Indian territory in Kargil. He along with five other soldiers was
taken captive by the Pakistan Army on May 15, 1999 and their mutilated bodies
were handed over to Indian Army on June 9.

NEW DELHI: The
ball has been set rolling for the Army to raise a new mountain
"strike" corps with two "independent" infantry brigades and
two "independent" armoured brigades, totalling over 80,000 soldiers,
along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.

While the Cabinet
Committee on Security (CCS) on July 17 had cleared the new mountain corps and
brigades, as was then reported by TOI, the defence ministry has now issued the
"government sanction letter" to the Army for the new raising to be
undertaken.

The new corps —
the 1.13-million strong Indian Army already has three "strike" corps
among the 13 such formations but they are largely geared towards Pakistan -
will eventually have its headquarters at Panagarh in West Bengal.

The new formation
to be called 17 Corps, along with its infrastructure, will come up over seven
years at a cost of around Rs 90,000 crore. "Officers and soldiers are
already being earmarked for posting to the new corps," said an official.

With additional
armoured regiments and infantry units based in Ladakh, Sikkim and Uttarakhand,
the new mountain corps will for the first time give India the capability to
also launch a counter-offensive into Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) in the event
of a Chinese attack.

As part of the
overall plan for "major force accretion" along the "northern
borders" with China, two new infantry divisions (35,000 soldiers and 1,260
officers), have already been raised at Lekhapani and Missamari in Assam in
2009-10. Their operational tasking is the defence of Arunachal Pradesh, which
China often claims as its territory.

The new corps,
with two specialized high-altitude divisions for "rapid reaction force
capability in mountains", will add to all this. This will give India,
which for long has focused on the land borders with Pakistan, some offensive
teeth against China as well.

This is critical
because China has "aggressively'' strengthened its military capabilities
in TAR, with at least five fully-operational airbases, an extensive rail
network and over 58,000-km of roads. This allows China to move over 30
divisions (each with over 15,000 soldiers) to the LAC, outnumbering Indian
forces by at least 3:1 there.

India tested a
“block-III variant of BrahMos with deep penetration capability” from a mobile
launcher.

The Indian Army
test-fired an advanced version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile system
on Monday.

According to The
Hindu’s Business Line, a “block-III variant of BrahMos with deep penetration
capability was test launched from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher.” The test was
reportedly successful.

It specifically
focused on the missile’s deep penetration capability and took place in Pokhran,
Rajasthan. According to an official“The
launch has successfully validated the deep penetration capability of the
supersonic cruise missile system against hardened targets.” The tested missile
was able to successfully follow a predetermined trajectory, and hit a hardened
concrete target with perfect accuracy given its supersonic velocity.

The BrahMos is
currently the fastest cruise missile in production capable of delivering a
conventional warhead, traveling at speeds of up to Mach 3.0. The missile is a
joint effort between India’s Defense Research and Development Organization
(DRDO) and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroeyenia (its domestic defense research
agency).

Times of India
reports that the Indian Army has incorporated two regiments of the missile into
its arsenal, with a third expected to be added soon. The Indian Navy has also
inducted the missile, using it across several frigates and destroyers. The
Indian Air Force will test an air-launched version of the missile shortly.

The Brahmos-II is currently
under development and is expected to be the hypersonic successor to the
original BrahMos. India’s former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has pushed for
the development of an unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) variant of the
upcoming hypersonic missile, saying that the “missile should be able to deliver
its payload and return to base.”

In general, the
surface-to-surface variants of the BrahMos have seen the most extensive
testing. Its penetration capabilities had been impressively demonstrated in the
past at sea when a single BrahMos cruise missile was able to effectively pierce
the hull of a free-floating ship, destroying it entirely.That test, in 2010, rendered India the first
country to have a maneuverable supersonic cruise missile. The deep penetration
block-III variant expands this capability greatly, allowing the BrahMos to
destroy reinforced targets.